NCJ Number
250364
Date Published
March 2015
Length
74 pages
Annotation
This report presents the findings and methodology of a process evaluation of the planning and implementation of the pilot phase of Adult Redeploy Illinois (ARI), under which Illinois counties divert non-violent offenders from prison into community corrections programs, which are less expensive than prison and are designed to be more effective in reducing recidivism.
Abstract
As an ARI participant, DuPage County was expected to reduce the number of individuals sent to the Illinois Department of Corrections from an eligible target population during the grant period (typically 12 months) by at least 25 percent. DuPage County exceeded its 25-percent prison-admission reduction goal, as it diverted 127 non-violent individuals from prison. Of the 37 individuals who entered the ARI program, 17 (46 percent) successfully completed the program, and 10 (27 percent) were re-sentenced to prison. ARI program administrators successfully implemented 8 of 10 intensive probation supervision components. Work remains to be done in fully implementing two components, i.e., creating minimum and maximum length of participation and setting probation-officer contact levels higher at the outset of supervision and then lowering levels in the final stages of supervision. Based on criminal histories, risk assessment instruments, and previous probation non-compliance, DuPage County targeted individuals at high risk for recidivism to be in the program. The planning process included a wide range of planning partners, which indicates program support from both justice system agencies and community-based organizations that provide various treatment services. Clients reported they were referred to services such as cognitive-behavioral therapy and substance-abuse treatment, and they generally were responsive to these services. 18 tables, 1 figure, 39 references, and appended interview questions, characteristics of clients interviewed, and data analysis techniques